Apparatus for extracting grease from grease-bearing materials.



C. R. MAYO.

APPARATUS POR EXTRACTING GREASE PROM GREASE BEARING MATERIALS.

APPLICATION I'ILIED APR. B. 19X0.

Patented July 1, 1913.

5 SHEETS-SHEE'I Y,

...nlriif C. R. MAYO.

APPARATUS PoR EXTEAGTING GREASE FRoM GREASE BEARING MATERIALS.

ARPLIGATION FILED APR.8,1910,

1,066,028. Patented July 1, 1913.

5 SHEETS-"SHEET 2.

C. R. MAYO.

APPARATUS FOR EXTRAGTING GREASE FROM GREASE BEARING MATBRALS= APPLICATION FILED APR. 8, 19N).

1,966,025, Pateted July 1, V1913.

5 sums-SHEETS.

G. R. MAYO.

APPARATUS FOR EXTRACTING GREASE FROM GREASE BEARING MATERIALS.

APPLIUATION FILED APR. a. 1910.

1,066,028, Patented July 1, 1913.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

C. R. MAYO,

' APPARATUS POR BXTRAGTING GREASE PRUM GREASE BEARING MA'I'BRIALS.

APPLICATION FILED APRJX. 1G10` Patented July l, 1912i SHEETS-*SHEET f Unirse sfrnfrns regains-'r ourson.

CHARLES ROBERT MAYO, OF LONDON, ENGLAND.

APPARATUS FOB, EXTRACTIG-REAS FROM GREASE-BEARING MATERIALS.

Specieation of Letters Patent.

Patented July 1, 1913.

Application filed April B, 1910. Serial No. 5,59cl76.

17'0 all 107mm it may concern Be it known that I, CHARLES ROBERT MAro, a subject of the King of Great Britaiiuresiding,T `at Aldermans House, Bishopsgate, 1n the ci t y of London', England, have invented a new and useful Apparatus for Extracting Grease :from Grease-Bearing Materials, of which the following isa specific-ation.

The present invention relates to .apparatusfor the extraction of grease and similar matter from and for treating wool, skins, textiles and other materials.

l The art olf-extinction bf grease, commonly known as degreasing, has beenprac-4 tised fqra number of years, and it Vhas long been recognized that. systems Working under reduced pressure 05er advantages in ithe', Way of distilling at'low temperatures, and Aso ou and such systems havecomprised extractors, stills and condensers interconnected in various Ways and adapted to .be'placed Aunder reduced pressureor vacuum; also it cant or overflow into the upper end 'of a still or grease collector, which latter is `connected to a ctmdenser. and for this purpose' n suction or vacuum pump is connected to the condenser, and draws otl' from the extractor still and condenser any air which is present attive cornmencement of operations,

or which may accumulate in the plant, or be admitted thereto, from time to time, so that aV partial or complete vacuum is constantly maintained by the pump. Of course,

'if there be one or more ries of extractors the lastplnember of a series would overflow linto the still.

A further feature of the present invention` wl'pich may be regarded as subsidiari to the fone'tfoingf`- principal improvement. consists in n particular arrangement denser in u-:iich the condensed solvent passed dewn'through or into a liquid, end the suction of the `ton, partly in vertical section of a,

plied to the space abovethe column. The pump nay deliver into a scrubber, either directly, in the known manner, or indirectly,

es, for instance, by interposing between the pump and the scrubber a compression or air vessel in which the increased pressure to which the smalltraces of solvent vapors are $0 subjected, overcomes the vapor tenslon, and

causes the vapors .to condense in thev form of dew, thereby facilitating the action ofthe scrubber.

These features, and the necessary connecf '165 tions and valves of apparatus embodying such features, will be hereinafter particularljy describedfwvith reerenceto the secon panying drawings in Whichz Figures l and lairepresent a'sideeleva-l 70 lent embodying-'allai the features above reigned to. Figs, 2 and 2a' represent a plan ofAF'igs, 1 and 1*; and Fig. 3 is an en velevation of the pump, air vesselv and scrubber seen to the left-hand side of Fig. l.

The description .will be directed first o'f .all more'particularly to the construction and arrangement of the pieces of apparatus,

fterward' their connections will be de- 80 scribed, and lastly the carrying out of :1 de

greasing operation with the apparatus according to theimproved method.

There may be any convenient number of extractors or degreasing vessels, but-three 8.5

are shown in the drawings, and these are indicated respectively by the reference letters a, b, c. The vessel a is shown in vertical section in Fig. l, and as all of thevessels a, o and c are alike, a description of thee@ vessel a equally applies to the. vessels b and The vessel a is conveniently 'cylindrifiL and stands upon a based, being shown fit d around a central thickened portion of the base d. 'A second cylinder e is fitted around '95 the periphery of the base d, ancl'is shown as.

beingabout twothirds of the heightoi the vessel e. I'lille annuler space f, betweerifthe vessel c and cylinder e is' filled with liquid,

so as to constitute ae' heating jacket furthe 106 A, coi-'er capable of being:r fitted litigi unen the vessel c., carries a suit-f frunni L e ft, and n y be secr-tred ts j, seen onlyk rocked ends of lo!) around the upper end or rim of the vessel a. The vessels a, L and c may standupon a bench or framing l. The liquid 1n the ./ja/'ckets f may be kept at an even temperature by admitting steam thereto by branch pipes 'm connected with the steam pipe n, the branches fm, being shown in'imersed in the liquid, and reaching almost to the bottom ot' the'jacliet space The still or grease collector 0 is somewhat similar in construction to the extraetors, as itconiprises a base y?, an outer cylinder g inelosing a jacket space r in the liquid, within` which a steam emission pipe s is immersed. The pipe s is connected with the steam pipe n aforesaid tl'irough a coil t, and branch pipe n, the heat from the coil t .serving to distilV oft1 the solvent as hereina't'tcr explained. rlhe still 0 is shown'supported upon an extension fu ofthe bench or framing t, and isalso provided with a. cover if; and gage fc.

The condensercomprises a coil y which may be forined of corrugated metal or otherwise in order to give a large cooling surface, and there may be a spray pipe z designed to project numerous sprays upward on to the interior ofa roof-shaped baille l, from which the liquid drips down on to the coil y, and Cools the latter in known manner. A vacuum gage may be fitted tothe uppermost pipe of the coil g/'as shown. The condenser further comprises a closed vessel 3, containing a column ot liquid, such water, and a pipe 4, passing downward through the liquid column and opening near the bottom of the latter, the pipe t being connected by means` of the pipe 5 with the discharge oritice of the condenser coil y. It desired the length of the pipe 4 which is immersed in the column of liquid may be such that it will have a very considerable condensing action and in fact it might be arranged for all of the condensing action to take place beneath the surface of the liquid column by immersing a suflicient length of the pipe 4 in the liquid of said column. At the lower end the vessel 3 opens into a vessel 6, which may be the reservoir for the carbon bi-sulfid or other solvent, and such .solvent being heavier than water remains beneath the water column, and is sealed by the latter. lt is to be noted that the pipe 4 does not pass down tov the reservoir 6, but only to' near the bottom of the vessel 3, so that any air sucked from the condenser is not delivered into solvent,-but only into the water in the Avessel 3.

The suction or vacuum pump 7 is connected by the pipe 8 with the condenser vessel 3, above the column of liquid, and the pump is preferably `of that kind which islcontin-V uously driven and maintains a constantly uniform degree of vacuum 1n the apparatus,

lS0 that the Said pump only does actual work whenever there has been an admission of air to the apparatus.

The delivery pipe 9 of the pump is led into a closed chamber 10, and an inverted U-v shaped pipe 11 opens at one end into the chamber 10, near to the bottom of the latter and at the opposite end near to the bottoni of a column of scrubbing liquid, which may be water, contained in thc vessel 12, A cock or valve 13 is fitted on the pipe 11, so that by adjusting this valve any desired degree ot compression can be obtainedA in the vez-:sel 10. Also the pipe S may be fitted with a valve 14 and the pipe with a valve 115. back pressure valve 114 may also be fitted cn the pipe 5 above the valve 115.

The extracting or degreasing vessel a is connected at its upper end by an overflow pipe 15 with the lower end of the vessel o, a cock 16 being fitted on the pipe 15; the vessel L is similarly connected with the vessel c by pipe ,17 fitted with cock 18. The vessel c is connected by an overfiow pipe 19 to a point near to the top of the still or grease collector 0 and the pipe 1t) has a control cock 20. All of the overflow pipes 15, 17, and 19, lead from ya point a short distance from the tops of the respective vessels.

At their lower ends the extraetors a, b, c, are connected to a common pipe Q1 through the cocks 22, and by suitably manipulating the latter, any two, or all three vessels, can be placed in communication with one another. The T-conneetion 23 for the overflow valve 20 on the vessel c is connected by` a pipe Z4 with the vessel a through a cock 240 attached to the rear of the conne: tion 23. The pipe Q1 is connected by a pipe l5 (having a cock Q50 therein) with the reservoir ,(3. A pipe 2G is connected with the-pipe 8 and branches 27 thereupon are connected with the upper ends ofV the extractors or degreasing vessels a, b,v c, each branch 2T havingV a cock 28. There may also be a cock 40 on the pipe 2G near to the pump. An` air or steam pipe 29 has branches 30 connecting with the bottoms of the extractors (L, b, c, each branch being fitted with a cock 31.

The spraypipe e has connected to it a water supply pipe A pipe 523, leading from the condenser vessel 3, and having a branch connection 34 to the scrubbing vessel 12, and a second connection 35 with the air vessel 10 enables a transference of liquid from one vessel to the other under control of the cocks 36 and 37 on the branches 34 and 'respeetively. A pipe 38 is connected between the scrubber 12 and the suction pipe 8, and communication through this pipe can be opened by the cock 39 thereon.'

A gage glass 41, is fitted to the vessel 3, to enable the height of the liquid column to he observed. Gageglasses 42 Fig. 1, may be fitted to the lower ends of the air vessel 10 accumulation 4of solvent in these Yvessels lto be observed. :Each ofthe-vessels a,b ande, and also `the vessel 0, has communication through branch pipes 43 litted with 'valves l5 44, with ya'pipe 45leading1to'the upper end of vthe condenser coil y.

At 'the'commencement of operationsthev vessels'fub, @and o may all-'be empty,1and if this is the cose the -vessels a b and c are Vm-each charged Awith lwool, or other material from which grease :is Ato be extracted, tov

about the height shown .in the vessel a 5in Fig. :1. The covers g of the-vessels a, b,und

a are now clampedfdown, also the cover w -0f :vessel 0, if'the Ylastnamed cover has-been removed. All ofthe '-valves might be closed exceptithe valves 28 and 40, and theselbeing opened, :and 'the pump -setto work the ves- A sels a, yIJ .and .c would be exhausted, and if 29 meanwhile steam-be admittedto=.the jackets f5by the lpipes'm, the contents-of the vessels a, b and @becoming-heated vwould lgive up any moisture -which'they contained, and the vapors would be draw-noti bythe pump. The cocks 28 and 40 may now be closed, and the cocks 14,- 115, 44, 20,'18 and liopened so that the pump 7 willfnow exhaust the vessel 3, the pipes La/nd 5, the'coiily, the pipes.

45 and 43, and :th vessels o, c, b and a. 30 When a sufficient degree of vacuum hasfbeen obtained the cock Y22 .of the vessel @andthe cock 250 in the, pipe 25 are opened andv flows into a, the charge in the vessel b will be displaced, and will overtiow by the pipe 17 into vessel c, and this, being now asolvent heavily laden with grease, is allowed Y to overflow into the vessel o by the pipe 19,

when ows rom .the reservoir-6 into the vessel a, riving before it the chaige already in a, `which will enter b, as aforesaid. If -preferred, Ihowever, yinstead otradmitting a fourth vcharge to--vessel a, the cocks 250 and 16 can be closed,'and the cock 22 on the vessel I) opened. t0n warmingthe water jacket of? the vessel' 41,' ressure will .bei generated, andthe solves@ orced over 'from a through the-pipe 21 to the vessel b,displacing the Ksmchargein b tb c, and that in c to o,-as aforesaid. If-the coil t in the vesselohas live steam passin through it the greaseladen solvent v'will e' distilled, the lsolvent evaporatedbeing drawn off into thevcondenser 65 l coy,jwhere ,it is'y condensed, .and ;passing 'as 6, beneath the .sel 3.

et anotherfresh charge of solvent a liquid from thence through pipe 5, down the pipe 4, in the vessel 3, to the reservoir column of water in the ves- When a'third charge of solvent is ad1nit- -ted to z the charge first admitted to a' will be found in c, and as the third charge to a (or of course, itmight'be the fourth) will 'be -very little contaminated with grease, it Imay be returned to the reservoir 6. Todo -this all of. the cocks on the vessel a ma 1 be closed, except the cock 22. Under these circumstances the vessel a being warmed by its jacket, 'quickly generates pressure, which drives the solvent from a back into the reservoir 6. The cock 22 is then closed and thc cock 44 opened, and the vapors from the solvent still clinging to the now degreased matter in a will'bc drawn ott' through the condenser.

After a time the cock 44 to a may be closed, and the air or steam, or steam and air cock 31, and the suction cock 28, `may be opened, and a deodorizing `curlrent of air, or steam, or steam and 4air be -iassed through the egreased matter, such current being drawn. off by the pump 7, and passed through theair vessel 10, andV scrubber 12 as hereinafter ex splained.- After closing all of the cocks on the vessela, the latter ,may he opened .and the degreased matter removed,` and a fresh charge of greasy material may be in ftroduced. The charge of solvent'whichwas K first in..a, and is now in 0,;may, after the 100 -exhaustionof the vessel a, through its cock 28, as before, be re-admitted to a by closing .the cocks 2O and 44 on the vessel c and the y cock 18 on the vesselb, and opening the' cock 240 on the pipe 2 4, and the cocks 22 beneath b and `c, for when this has been done the pressure which will be generated in the -vessel b through the Warming of the water ,jacket will-drive the `solvent from the vessel. b through the pipe 21 into the vessel c, 110 and the contents of the vessel 0 will then overflow through the pipe 24 into the vessel (t. T he cock 22 on the vessel I) may now be closed, and the contents in the vessel 7) may befreed ,from the remaining solvent and deodorized in the manner just previously described with reference to the vessel a. After this, the degreased material vis' removed froni tho-vessel b, and the lat-ter receives a lfreshpcharge of material, and after closinglzo and exhausting the-vessel b, the solvent :from

the vessel a may be driven into-the vessel b, by opening the cock 16,-andrt-hefcocks22 beneath the vessels a andI @,a-hd closing all 'othervcocks except cock 442ml' the vessel b, "Q25,

-so'thatthe pressure which is thengenerated in 'e drives the solvent into a and the con-` tents of the -vessel o overflow into b, The 'vez-iselc, after-being freed from the remain s fing solvcnt,:as above described,m:iy.now .be 130 opened in order to remove its contents, and

to give it a fresh charge, the same procedure l being observed as described with reference to the 1 and I'.

It will be understood that it is very easy, before transferring solventfrorn the vessel c to the vessel a, or .from c to b, to--cause' to overflow into the vessel the upper layers of solvent laden with grease, and tortransfer only the lower layers of comparatively grease-free solvent. It will also be. observed that when in regular work, one charge only is caused to overflow into the vessel 0 in .each cycle. As the grease-laden solvent. flows into the still o, it is evaporated and led oil to the condenser, the pressure in the latter being lower, dueto the condensation constantly taking place. It will be readily recognized that the pump has very little work to do owing to this fact, and that the pump` is only required to suck out air which has leaked into the appa atus, or which has been admitted when opening one of the extractors a, or c. The pressure of the atmosphere being greater than the normal pressure Within the apparatus, or, at any rate, within that part. of the apparatus Whici represents the closed circuit of the solvent, the tendency is for air to leali' into the apparatus, and the solvent vapors cannot, therefore, leak out,

The grease which collects within the vessel 0 may be drawn olf from time to time, or as desired through the draw-oil' cock 46. If desired, the vessel o may be provided with balhes for the grease-laden solvent or emulsion to flow over, or with other devices of knowircharacter designed to facilitate. the liberation of the solvent vapors from the grease. v

Any air passing into the condenser coil jl/ will pass with the vapors and liquid through the pipes 5 and 4, and whereas the solventwill remain beneath the column of water `in the vessel 3, the solvent being heavier than water, the air will rise through the water, and will be sucked off through the pipe S. It will be noticed that the column of water in the vessel 3 not only serves to seal oil' the solvent contained in the i-'eservoir (3, but also serves to provide a considerable head, which will force the solvent as quickly as desired into the extractors when the cocks 250 and 22 are opened. lf preferred, however` the reservoir 6 might. be detached from the vessel 3, and mighthave its own column of vvater for sealing and pressure'purposesr` and in that ease the space above the water could be in comu'iunication with the suction pipe S. so that the whole system would still retain its low pressure clniracterislir, and all solvent would he water sca led.

Referring now incre particularly to' rig.

3, itmay be explained that should the pump draw ott' any au' trom the apparatus, as

aforesaid, such air in most cases will bear slight traces of solvent vapors which are very dillicult to extract and remove from such air, the retention of these last traces being due to vapor tension. ln order to efectually remove these last traces the delivery of'air from the pump "7, instead of being taken to the scrubber directly, is rst passed through the pipe 9 into the chamber 10. The mouth of the delivery pipe il may be downwardly directed in the chamber, as shown, and the chamber 1G may contain a column of water chiefly intended for sealing ofi any solvent which may be deposited. The vessel l() may, of course, be fitted with a solvent draw-oli cock and a. gage. Pressure is set up in the chamber 10, due to entry of any air from the pgrnp, and this pressure can be regulated as desired by closing or adjusting the cock 153, so that the pressure varies is accordance with the freedom of escape from the chamber 10. The pressure thus set up in the chamber 10 releases practically all'of the last traces of solvent which are deposited in the. form of dew, and any traces not. so deposited will pass on to the scrubber through the pipe l1. If desired the pressure'in the chamber :nay be increased Vby the assistance of other means, for instance, by the admission of water under pressure to the chamber while the valve 13 is closed or partly closed.

The lower end of the pipe 11 in the scrubber may be titled, if desired, with a perforated rose, .or ring, or spray nozzle, and the scrubber may be fitted with bailles'in order to cause the ascending air-bubbles to perform a tortuous course. 1f the air, after being),- compressed in the vessel l0, be allowed to stand therein for a time so that its temperature becomes reduced, owing say, to radiation of heat from Lne walls of the chamber, then.l upon opening the cock lll, 'the air will suddenly expand into the scrubber` the temperature will be. still further reduced, and the condensation of solvent vapors will be expedited; also the temperature of the scrubbing liquid will be kept low. and will not he. raised. as it otherwise mighty he, due to the heat given out in compressing the air.

What l claim and desire to secure by Let.- ters Patent of the United ql"ttes 'is:,

i.- Apparatus of the character described, comprising an extractorv` a stil-l. a condenser, a rcservoiigaiul circuit. connections arranged to connect, the same in a closed circuit in such ulannerthat solvent. from said reservoir displaces Igrease-laden solvent contained in said extractor and causes said greaseladen solvent to overflow into said still, volatile prmlucts trom said still being passed into said condenser which delivers eoialcnsatiou liquids to Said reservoir, a chamber adapted to receive uncondensed fluidrtiromv saidgcondenser, andra vacuum pumpcutsidof said. circuit, the suction of said pump1 .being connected to said chamber and. said pump being arrangedv to draw off .5; uncondensed fluids froin' and to maint-ain reduced pressure in saidcircuit, substantially as and for the pur ose set forth.

f2.Apparatus o lPthe-chanacter. described, comprising aclosed circuit consistingfoffan iegtrictor, a still, a condenser, and. a reservdir, circuit Connections therefor such that 'theelements of said circuit are adapted to 'produce movement of the liquid throughout F said circuit only by displacement, evaporajip tion and condensation, a vacuum pump, a '-f connection between the suction of said vpump and said circuit, an`d a seal in said connectionl between said condenser and said pump, substantially as set forth.

3.'Ap.paratus ofv the character described, comprising al closed circuit consisting of an cxtractor,"a still, a condenser, and a reservoir, circuit connections therefor such that the elements ofsaid cir-cuit are adapted to produce movement ofthe liquid throughout said circuit o nly by displacement, evapora tion and condensation, means connected with said circuit adapted to set up and maintain a vacuum in said circuit, anda liquid seal between said means and said'circuit, substantially `as set'forth. f' 4. Apparatus of the character described, comprising a closed circuit consisting of an extractor, astill, a condenser, and agreser-A voir, cirrit'connections therefor such -that the elements'ofksaid circuit are 'adapted to produce movement of thel liquid throughout said circuit only by displacement, evapora- 'tion and condensation, aclosed vessel containing a liquid` column, a connection from the delivery of said condenser tovsaid vessel at apoint beneath .the surface of the liquid column .t-lierein, means for producing vacuum and a connection". 'between the said the surface of the liquidV column, substanL tially asset forth.

5. qmara'tus of the character described comprising an extracting chamber, overflow connection therefrom, a still. connected to said overow, a condenser, a connection be tween said condenser and said still', a closed vesselcontaining a column of liquid superposed upon astore of solvent, a connection from the delivery of said condenser to a point in said vessel between the extremities of said liquid column, aconnection between the lower end of'said vessel and the lower end of Ysaid extracting chamber, means adapted to apply reduced pressure to the closed circuit formed by the combined pieces of apparatus, and a connection between said 'means and the space'in .said vessel9 above said liquid column, substantially as Setforth.

means and the space in said Vessel vabove--p 6. Apparatus. ofthe character described, comprisinga-closed circuit consisting of an extractor, a still, a condenser, a reservoir 'andthe circuit connections' therefor, a vacuum pump, a liquid-sealed connection be tween theA delivery connection ofsaid condenser and the suction of said pump, the latter being adapted to exhaust the space above said seal and thereby to maintain said circuit under reduced pressure conditions, a 75 chamber with a restricted outlet, and a connection between the delivery of said pump and said chamber, substantially asA and for the purpose'sct forth.

7'. Apparatus of the character described, comprising a closed circuit consisting of an extractor, a still, a condenser, a reservoir and the circuit connections therefor, a vacuum pump, a liquid-sealed connection between the delivery connection of said condenser and the suction of said pump, the latter being adapted to exhaust the space above said seal and thereby to maintain said cir# cuit under vreduced pressure conditions, a chamber, an adjustable exit valve `on said '90 chamber adapted to restrict the outlet from v said chamber to any extent/desired, and aI connection between the delivery of said pump and said chamber, substantially as and for the purpose set forth. i S. Apparatus of the character described, comprising a closed circuit'y consisting of a pluralityof inter-connected extractors, a still, an overflow connection from o ne of said `enti-actors to Asaid still, a condenser, 100 separate connections between the condenser andv said still and said extractors, a reservoir connected with said'condenser, a vacuum pump, and a liquid .seal between' the suction of said puinp and,said circuit, sub-,105 stantially as set forth. I

9. Apparatus.9.Lthe.,chracter described, comprising in combination a closed circuit consisting of an extractor, astill, 'a contions therefor, a vacuum pump, a liquid I/se'a'led connection between thedelivery connection of said condenser and the suction of 'said pump, the latter being adapted to exhaust the space above said seal and thereby to maintain said circuit under reduced pressure conditions, a chamber, a connection between the deliveryv of said pump and said chamber, a gas scrubber, a connection ,between =said chamber and said scrubber, and adjustable means for restricting the communication through the last-named connection, substantially as andfor the purpose set forth. 10. Apparatus of the character described, comprising an extractor, a still, and a condenser in circuit, circuit connections therefor so arranged that movement of solvent through said Circuit isadaptedfto'be producedby a displacement, evaporatlon and denser, a reservoir and the'circuit connec-'llovondensaton, suction means to draw 0H uny In testimony whereof I have signed my condensed gases and vapors from sald cuname to this specifcaton in the presence of 1G mit, a compressxon chamber Comprlslng :1 two Subscrlblng Wltnesses.

gas space, outfovf restmctmg means 0n vthel CHARLES ROBERT MAYO gas eXlt from salu chamber, and a plpe cn- Y l nectcd between the delivery of sald suctlon VVltnesses:

means and the mlet to szud chamber, subl W. C. MORBEY,

stantially as and for the purpose set forth. 5 RIPLEY WILSON. 

